SUNUNU RESIGNS UNDER FIRE AS CHIEF AIDE TO PRESIDENT

Published: December 4, 1991

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The circumstances of Mr. Sununu's resignation, which had been the subject of heated speculation for days in Washington, were as extraordinary as the public spectacle of his prolonged political death throes.

It was not clear why Mr. Bush did not name a new chief of staff today. It was also not clear whether Mr. Cheney would accept the post, if asked.

Mr. Sununu leaves a post that always has been shaped more by its occupants than by any job description, but is among the most powerful positions in Government. He was Mr. Bush's gatekeeper, controlling access to the Oval Office and reviewing all paperwork reaching and leaving Mr. Bush's desk. Mr. Sununu sat in on most major policy discussions and has been the President's top adviser on many domestic policy and political matters. Actions Aboard Plane

Mr. Sununu gave Mr. Bush his four-and-half-page resignation letter, which was handwritten on White House stationery, and Mr. Bush wrote a reply as the two huddled in Mr. Bush's stateroom aboard Air Force One on the way from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington to Bradenton, Fla.

There, Mr. Bush went about a visit to the Tropicana orange juice plant without betraying any sign of the events aboard his plane, brushing off a question about Mr. Sununu with a brusque, "I'm here to learn about oranges."

As Air Force One flew from Bradenton to Meridian, Miss., Mr. Bush's letter was typed by a secretary. But he still said nothing as he toured the Peavey Electronics guitar factory.

A few seconds after the President's motorcade sped out of the plant gates, White House staff aides rushed into a makeshift newsroom at the plant and distributed copies of the two letters.

In his letter to Mr. Bush, Mr. Sununu said he wanted to thank Mr. Bush "for the fun we have had these last three years."

Mr. Sununu continued: "And I would never want to not be contributing positively, much less be a drag on your success."

Mr. Bush credited Mr. Sununu with a major role in passing the Clean Air Act, this year's civil rights measure, a law on Americans with disabilities and the budget agreement.

Mr. Sununu's political problems began shortly after he arrived in Washington. By the time he resigned, stories were rife about the fear with which he was treated by subordinates, who often accused him in private of meeting their suggestions with scorn.

The uproar over the 1990 budget deal, in which Mr. Sununu was seen by many Republican lawmakers as a malevolent influence, exacerbated Mr. Sununu's troubles. In the same fashion, he was badly wounded by disclosures of his extensive use of military aircraft for personal and political trips.

More recently, Mr. Sununu was blamed for the lack of direction in Mr. Bush's domestic policy staff, which was unable for months to present the President with a consensus about what he should do to spur the economy.

Then Mr. Sununu committed what many in Washington considered the unpardonable sin: he made his boss look foolish by saying that Mr. Bush had "ad-libbed" a remark about lowering credit card interest rates, when in fact the comments had been written into the President's speech.

Photos: John H. Sununu returning to the White House yesterday with President Bush after resigning as the White House chief of staff. (Agence France-Presse) (pg. A1); President Bush talking to workers as he toured a Tropicana plant in Bradenton, Fla., after receiving the resignation of John H. Sununu. (Associated Press) (pg. B12)